July 28, 2006

It was getting too dark for photos. I was on a narrow road within a menacing forest. Dorothy growled into the gloom. Then, like a ghost, a solitary coyote emerged toward us. After sizing us up, it turned and trotted off up the road. My cellphone beeped. The curious coyote stopped for one magic second and held us once more with glowing eyes. For a moment I had the realization that we were fellow travelers.

It's an exercise that's guaranteed to sharpen up observation and creativity. You have to accept the proposition that looking through a camera viewfinder and taking pictures is a valid creative tool. Rather than letting subject matter move you, in this exercise you are called upon to be moved by a prompt.

"Timed creativity" needs to be set to suit each individual, and may vary in different environments. Walking in an enriched place might call for a creative moment every minute or so.

Every three or five minutes works best when in a car.

A kitchen timer is perhaps the handiest, except that they often have to be reset after each beep. Some wristwatches or alarm clocks can be set to go off regularly. A simple timer that's readily available is the cellphone. Most mobiles these days have an audible beep that can be set to alert the owner that there was a missed call. You need to call your cellphone and not answer it in order to get a regular insistent beep. Mine's set for every five minutes--and it goes on indefinitely.

When the beep goes off you immediately compose and shoot whatever is available. With digital it won't cost you a penny.

Things are truly seen when you have an obligation to do something about them. In the city or the country the exercise can be exhilarating. It's in familiar environments, particularly, that you realize you're making gains. Time and again you hear yourself saying: "Why didn't I notice that before?"

The second part of the exercise is where you bring the timed material back to your computer. I run my shots through Picasa2 (editor's note:Photo software from Google - see link at right) and give myself a slide show. Water reflections, distant vistas and patterns at the feet, mixed with human interaction and architecture, gain interest on the big screen. The world becomes an even more interesting place, calling for further study, understanding, and pictorial love.

Best regards,

Robert

PS: "Wolves are hunters; they are adaptable with eyes that absorb their landscape. Be like a wolf--fascinated and alive with curiosity." (Michael Duncan)

Esoterica: The digital revolution has introduced the free and wholesale collection of images. A curiosity prompt heightens the senses and hones compositional ability. The system will find yourself making "tweeners," those images you grab between the timed obligatory ones. Don't resist. Even a trip to Safeway can become a creative bonanza. I always thought creative folks did this sort of thing automatically. I was wrong. Visual tonics such as "timed creativity" need to be introduced to refresh and refurbish the muse.

Current clickback: If you would like to see selected, illustrated responses to the last letter, "Early and late bloomers," please go to:

Gift idea: Give the gift of the twice-weekly letters. We are currently snail-mailing a free copy of The Painter's Keys (the book) to current subscribers who go to the URL below and send us the names and email addresses of five or more of their creatively-minded friends. No strings, just a thank-you. We make it easy. We even send your friends a personal letter to let them know the twice-weekly connection is from you.

Yes, please go ahead and forward this letter to a friend.

If you would like to comment or add your own opinions, information or observations to this or other letters, please do so. Just click 'reply' on this letter or write rgenn@saraphina.com

(c) Copyright 2006 Robert Genn. If you wish to copy this material to other publications or mail lists, please ask for permission by writing rgenn@saraphina.com Thanks for your friendship.